


Harry Potter; The Hidden Secret

by MissScarlette1



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Contains profanity, Drama, F/M, Gen, Other, Scenes of a sexual nature - Freeform, Sensitive Topic/Issue/Themes, Substance Abuse, mild violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2007-09-20
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:01:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Underage
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24412480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissScarlette1/pseuds/MissScarlette1
Summary: Harry's last year at Hogwarts, is of course not going to turn out the way it should. The road ahead is long and Harry will have to face challenges that couldn't have been thought of in his wildest nightmares. But when he's blindsided by a hidden secret, will he fight through the darkness of betrayal to see the light?
Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Remus Lupin/Nymphadora Tonks, Sirius Black/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1. The Plan

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: 
> 
> Before we start, there are three things I would like to say:  
> 1\. I have only been inspired by J.K Rowling, all original plot lines belong to her. I am merely imagining a slightly different turn of events. I do not own any of the original HP content.  
> 2\. I live in utter denial and Sirius still lives on.  
> 3\. I started this story back in 2007 on Harry Potter Fan Fiction and dropped it for several reasons. But I have now been inspired to pick up the pen/keyboard again and I thought I would expand out from just the one site. My Penname here is the same as the one there but, I promise, I am the same person. 
> 
> Any feedback is most welcome!

**Chapter 1. The Plan  
**  
It was a chilly night in July, quite unusual except for the fact that the weather was hardly predictable in England. The wind howled and whipped around the abnormally shaped cottage that was The Burrow. For anyone looking at it from the outside, would worry that it would soon topple from the sheer force of the gales. To the trained eye however, its bizarre shape and jaunty angles, were obviously being held together by magic and it would take a lot more than a fierce wind to knock it down.  
  
There was a gentle, warm and welcoming light coming from the kitchen window on the lowest level of the house where a group of people sat huddled together on the long, wooden kitchen bench. The atmosphere, however, was tense and riddled with anxiety.  
  
“We have got to think of a better way to get Harry out of that wretched house, once and for all” said Sirius, pausing to take a sip of Butterbeer and scowling slightly. “We’ve had no contact with him, just assurances that he’s alright. He must be going out of his mind!”  
  
“Well what do you propose Sirius? Clearly, you don’t agree with my suggestion!” hissed Mrs Weasley.  
  
“Now now, Molly, Sirius” said Remus, holding a hand up to Sirius, before he could retort. “Let us not get irritated with one another. It is of no use to anyone. Mad-Eye, what do you think? Kingsley, what’s the latest from the Ministry?”  
  
“Well, we know that the Floo networks are being monitored, as are Portkeys and the skies. It would be unwise to use any of those options. I believe that Mad-Eye has come up with the best suggestion, Mad-Eye, care to explain?” came Kingsley’s low and rumbling voice.  
  
The Order turned to look at Mad Eye, waiting expectantly for an explanation. Mad Eye, who was leaning back slightly in his chair and cleaning his magical eye on a cloth, did not respond immediately.  
  
“Well?” barked Sirius, “We don’t have all day Mad Eye and - must you do that right now?” Sirius motioned his head towards the magical eye that made an ever so slight squeak on the cloth.  
  
Mad Eye looked up at Sirius and without breaking eye contact, popped the eye back into the socket with a distinct _pop!  
  
"_If your eye had been worn by someone other than you Sirius, I can assure you, that you would want to clean it too."  
  
“But moving on to more pressing matters. My plan is that I go and collect Potter myself using side-along apparition and a disillusion charm”  
  
“Why you?” asked Sirius, “Why can’t I go? I am his godfather after all!”  
  
Remus sighed but did not bother to respond. The closer it came to getting Harry away from the Dursleys, the more irritable and quite frankly, annoying, Sirius became. Mad Eye could have this one.  
  
“Because Sirius, I am an ex-Auror who has ample experience in situations like this and you don’t” growled Mad Eye, “and let’s not forget that you, though you can walk as a free man, are still a target for You-Know-Who!”  
  
“I don’t care!” shouted Sirius, standing up abruptly waving his arms in frustration, “I’m his godfather!"  
  
“Exactly!” said Mad Eye, who stood up awkwardly and limped over to Sirius, backing him into the edge of the kitchen counter. Though not too different in height, Mad Eye seemed to tower over Sirius. “Exactly” he repeated in a threatening whisper. The room was silent, all eyes were on the pair.  
  
“You are Harry’s Godfather. That is precisely why you of all people should not go. If You-Know-Who captures you, if he uses you against the boy, what do you think will happen. It was not too long ago when he did just that and look at how that turned out!  
  
“But by all means. You don’t care. So go on then. Go and get yourself captured and see what it does to Potter. Let’s just hope You-Know-Who doesn’t possess him again!” Mad Eye turned away from Sirius and limped back to the kitchen table. Sirius stood silently, pale in the face and a light sweat had appeared on his forehead. Mad Eye was right, but recently, he found it harder to remain level-headed. Feeling more and more nettled by the situation, he looked at the room of eyes staring at him waiting for his response. It irritated him further.  
  
“Fine.” He muttered, “But don’t you ever use that against me again, or your remaining eye will live to regret it” and with that he stormed out of the house and into the gardens of the Burrow, suddenly needing some air. The house shook with the force of the door slamming shut. Partly due to Sirius but also because at that same moment, the wind whipped up and caught the door assisting with his somewhat dramatic departure.  
  
The remaining members of the order were silent, stunned at Sirius’ overreaction.  
  
“I don’t know what’s gotten into him lately” mumbled Tonks, desperate to break the deafening silence. “I’m sure he didn’t mean that Mad Eye”. Tonks, who was particularly fond of Mad Eye as he had trained her as an Auror, was embarrassed by Sirius’ remarks  
  
“I know” said Mad Eye, taking a sip of Firewiskey from his hipflask, “it’s not the first time I’ve been threatened, won’t be the last, I’m sure  
  
“I don’t know that it was a real threat, Alastor” said Mr Weasley, taking of his glasses and wiping them clean on his worn out sweater, “I think he’s just feeling frustrated at not having Harry around, despite being able to offer him a different home. He never did quite understand Dumbledore’s instructions”  
  
“Does anyone?” asked Kingsley, much to everyone’s amusement “I for one, generally take his word without ever trying to understand what it means, I just trust it is for a reason and it will work out in the end”  
  
“Well said,” laughed Remus, clapping Kingsley on the shoulder, “So are we agreed then? Alastor will retrieve Harry, two days before his birthday and bring him here?”  
  
The order all nodded and murmured their agreement.  
  
“Perfect,” said Remus, standing up, “If that’s all then, I’m going to try and speak to Sirius. Can’t guarantee you’ll get an apology Mad Eye, but I’ll do my best”  
  
“Don’t bother Remus,” said Mad Eye, “It’ll take a great deal more than that to offend me. Just get him on board so he doesn’t try anything stupid.”


	2. Chapter 2. The Letter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shaking, Remus held the letter in his hand.
> 
> “No” he breathed, staring at the letter “ that’s not possible”

**Chapter 2. The Letter**

_Get to the phone Harry.  
Mad Eye._   
  
Puzzled, Harry sat at his desk trying to figure out exactly what Moody meant. Phone? What on earth was that about? Moody never used phones, he did not believe in them. The only time Harry ever had a phone call was from Ron and Hermione. Frustrated, he stared down at the letter. The first letter he had since he was here, and this is what he got?  
  
“ Fucks sake!” he said screwing the letter into a ball and chucking it into the bin. He slammed his hands down on the desk and then brought them up to rest his head in his hands. He sat there fuming when he heard the phone downstairs ringing. He raised his head slightly, listening out for Uncle Vernon’s Voice.  
  
“ Hello?” He heard his uncle shout. “ WHO?”  
  
There was silence and Harry didn’t dare breathe. Was this what Mad Eye was on about? Was he calling Harry? He waited, still and silent.  
  
“ BOY!” He heard Vernon shout “ GET YOURSELF DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW!”  
  
As if the wooden chair burnt him, Harry jumped up from his desk and ran to the door and down the stairs to come face to face with a purple-faced man. Happiness swelled inside Harry at the very thought of being contacted by his side, his world, by the people he called his real family. Harry snatched the phone from Uncle Vernon.  
  
“ Hello?”  
  
“ Harry? Is that you?”  
  
“Mad Eye?”  
  
“ Yes, of course, who else would it be you idiot”  
  
“ Sorry” Harry said grinning, “ Why are you calling?”  
  
“ Well we all decided that it would be a safer way of contacting you all the floo networks are being watched, and so is the post, in fact that clever friend of yours Hermione came up with the idea. Pure brilliance if you ask me.”  
  
Harry smiled, Hermione was after all the smartest witch he’d ever met, and was happy that she had come up with a plan to get in contact with him, even if it was Mad Eye that he was talking to.  
  
“ Anyway Harry, as you know it’s your birthday this coming Wednesday…”  
  
“Yeah…”  
  
“ Well after that, you’re not safe at your aunt and uncle’s. The protection that is currently keeping you safe, breaks as soon as you turn 17 and become an adult by our law.”  
  
“Right… so what’s the plan?”  
  
“ I’m getting to that. I’ll be coming to get you on Monday evening. Two nights before your birthday.”

  
“Really?!” Harry could not contain his excitement. That was only two days from now.   
  
“Yes… Why would I lie about that?”  
  
“ No reason... Go on...”  
  
“ Anyway, just wanted to tell you, be ready by 6 o’clock, you hear? Do not be late. It is imperative that we leave on time.”  
  
“ Got it. Thanks Mad Eye. ”  
  
“ No problem Kid. Talk to you later”  
  
“ Yeah.. see you Monday.”  
  
Harry placed the receiver on the hook and bounded up the stairs ignoring his Aunt and Uncles complaints. Only stopping halfway up the stairs to call down to them.  
  
“ I’m leaving for good. Just put up with me till Monday”  
  
  
 *******  
  
  
 ** _R. J. Lupin  
The Kitchen Table  
The Burrow_** _  
  
Dear Mr. Lupin  
  
I would like to organise a meeting with you, as I currently hold something that belongs to you. It was held in Albus Dumbledore’s will, and as I am currently very aware that the meeting in which Albus Dumbledore’s will is going to be discussed has yet to come, I was informed that I was to give you this letter before the 31st of July. Reasons are unknown to me, but I will be arriving shortly with Arthur Weasley.  
  
This meeting will not take very long. Thank you for your co-operation  
  
 **Rufus Scrimgeour**  
Minister for Magic_  
  
  
***   
  
Remus passed the letter around to everyone at the kitchen table in the Burrow, and for a moment there was a hushed silence. What on earth could it be about? No one talked as everyone’s eyes fixated on the magic clock.   
  
The arrow with Mr Weasley’s head on it was currently hovering over ‘travelling’ until it swung to ‘home’. Everyone jumped with its movement and looked at the door. They could hear faint voices, and footsteps that were growing louder and louder before they stopped altogether.  
  
There was a knock at the kitchen door and both Remus and Mrs Weasley stood up with a jolt. Mrs Weasley ran to the door and after asking for the password, let both her husband and new Minister for Magic in.  
  
“Thank you Molly.” said Scrimgeour, eyeing the room he had just walked into, “Apologies for interrupting your lunch, but Remus I wonder if we could have a quick word?” His eyes landed on Remus, who had made no further movement.   
  
“Er, y-yes, Minister – this way” he stuttered, before regaining his composure and pointing the Minister towards the living room. He was keen to get away from the prying eyes of Molly, Arthur, Sirius, Ron, Hermione, Fred and George, who had all, apart from Ron, stopped eating and instead were watching intently at the scene before them.   
  
Once in the living room, they both stood and stared at each other momentarily before the Minister opened his mouth.   
  
“As I said in my letter, I have something from Albus Dumbledore that we have been asked to give you prior to 31st July. I assume this has something to do with Potter?”   
  
“I would have to read it first Minister” replied Remus, honestly. “I take it then, that you have not read it?”  
  
“No, I have not” said Scrimgeour, “Albus saw to it that only you could be the one to open it”  
  
“I see”.  
  
Then there was silence. Remus stared at the Minister, waiting for his next move. When there wasn’t one, he shuffled uncomfortably.   
  
“May I have the letter then?” Remus asked.   
  
Scrimgeour, reluctantly reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a letter. Before handing it over, he held it up. “I suppose you will not share the contents of this letter with me?” he enquired.   
  
Remus thought about it for a moment, but then realised that if this letter were to be read by anybody, they would not be having this conversation. “No Minister,” he said solemly, “I am afraid that I won’t be able to do that” **_  
  
_****“** As I expected - fine” he huffed, “Take it”. The Minister slapped the letter into Remus’ outstretched hand.  
  
Remus turned the letter over in his hand, unsure of what to expect. At his touch, the letter gave off a faint glow, as if it knew he was the intended recipient.  
  
  
 *****  
**  
  
 _Dear Remus,  
  
I am terribly sorry for asking this of you, but as you have this letter, it obviously means that I am no longer around. I therefore must ask you to do something for me.  
  
Throughout the last couple of months before my death, I was out with Harry as you so know, however I spent a great deal of time attending to other matters.   
  
I realise this is a sensitive topic, but there is only so much I can say in a letter so I shall get straight to the point. It is about Lily and James’ first child, Charlotte. Remus, my friend, I must confess to something that I am not proud of but something I hope in time, you will understand.  
  
Charlotte is alive._ _  
  
_Remus’ heart stopped. His blood ran cold and the hairs on his arms and the back of his neck stood upright. _This cannot be possible._ He could hear his heart beating in his ears, almost unbearable. His eyes felt like they were vibrating, the words in front of him dancing on the page. He blinked several times to bring the letter back into view and inhaled deeply, as until now he realised, he had been holding his breath. With shaking hands, he continued reading. _  
  
__Forgive me for hiding it from you for all these years, but believe me when I say, I thought it was in everyone’s best interest – particularly Harry’s. The time, however, has come for them to reunite.  
  
It took me a while to gain her trust, as I am sure that you can imagine, she was quite angry with me. I believe that she now understands why I did what I did, though I fear I will never have her forgiveness. Nor yours, or Harry’s.   
  
I sense great power in Charlotte, a power I know will be of the upmost importance when the time comes. You will of course know this; you were, after all, her Godfather. Sometimes, we believed that you knew her better than her parents.  
_ _  
_ _She is waiting for you and she will share everything I have told her, with you and Harry in much greater detail than this letter could ever provide. If I know her as well as I will allow myself to believe, then she will have been camping nearby the Burrow for the past week. She promised me, when I gave her the address, that she would not approach until you were ready. You will find her at the end of the road, in the nearby field - the one with the horses.  
  
Forgive me. _

_Yours,_

**_Albus Dumbledore  
_** _  
_  
***  
  
Rufus Scrimgeour had left the house as soon as he had handed over the letter to Remus. He said he had to get back to the Ministry.   
  
Everyone had crowded close to Remus to see what was going on, and who the letter was from. The house was completely silent. Confusion and anxiousness washed over them all as they watched Remus’ eyes flick back and forth across the page.  
  
Shaking, Remus held the letter in his hand.  
  
“No” he breathed, staring at the letter, “that’s not possible”  
  
It was unbelievable. It could not be, there was no way she was alive, he had checked the night that it had happened, and she was not anywhere to be seen. He should know, he spent hours checking for her, calling for her, and in the end after weeks of searching, he had to give up. He had never recovered from the loss.

“Remus, my friend, what is it?” asked Sirius worriedly, reaching out and placing a hand on his friend’s shoulder.  
  
The sensation of Sirius’ hand on his shoulder brought Remus back into the room. He looked at his friend before falling into the nearest armchair.  
  
“Remus!”  
  
Sirius knelt next to the armchair that his friend had just collapsed into. His eyes were open and he was clearly conscious, but Sirius questioned whether Remus was truly there; his mind seemed to have wandered.  
  
“Remus” he said, more firmly this time. “Talk to me, what does the letter say? What’s happened Moony?”   
  
At the sound of his nickname, Remus’ eyes darted to Sirius. He tried to speak, but it felt as though his mouth, throat and entire existence had dried up. He managed to make a sound somewhere between a grunt and a whimper and handed the letter to Sirius to read.   
  
Confused and somewhat bewildered, Sirius hesitantly took the letter from Remus. He glanced up at the group that were all nervously waiting for some sign that everything was okay. He shrugged his shoulders and looked down at the letter and began to read.   
  
By the time he had finished, it was clear to everyone in the room that something significant had happened, because as soon as Sirius had finished reading, he fell back on to his heels with his hand over his mouth.   
  
“Remus” he breathed, taking his hand away from his mouth and staring at his friend with wide eyes “Remus, how is this possible?”   
  
Remus, who looked as though he was about to be sick, shook his head. He was pale and clammy and looked terrified. “I don’t know” he said, hoarsely.   
  
“Sorry, but what the bloody hell is going on!” demanded Ron, breaking the silence and making everyone jump.

“Ronald Weasley!” scolded Mrs Weasley, frowning at her youngest son, “Watch your language!”   
  
“Remus, dear” she continued softly, “Whatever is the matter?” She approached Remus carefully, followed by her husband.   
  
Ron, Hermione, Fred and George all exchanged quizzical looks as they watched the ‘grown ups’ in a huddle by the armchair under the window.   
  
Remus looked up at Molly and Arthur, the only other people in the room who would understand what he was about to say. “Charlotte – she’s alive” he whispered to them both. Molly gasped and clapped her hand to her mouth, whereas Mr Weasley looked simply at Remus and then at Sirius.   
  
“You cannot be serious” he said to them quietly, his face unreadable. “You mean to tell me, after all this time?”   
  
Remus nodded. It was all he could do.   
  
“But where?” asked Molly, barely audible.   
  
Remus turned his head to look out of the window, that looked out on to the garden path that led all the way to the dusty road. If you turned left at the end of the garden path it would take you into the nearby village. If you took a right at the end of the garden path it would lead you down to a dead end, leading into some fields. His eyes followed the road to the right and stopped on a large expanse of green. He could see the horses.  
  
“There” he replied.


	3. Chapter 3. The Revelation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “What’s the matter Hermione?” asked Ginny, peering past George at her friend “Why do you look so nervous? Mum just said we could be here.”
> 
> “I know,” whispered Hermione, “I just think Harry should be here too. It feels wrong without him”

**Chapter 3: The Revelation  
**   
  
It had been a full two hours since Remus had first read the letter, left for him by Dumbledore. Sirius looked at his friend, who was sitting next to him at the kitchen table in complete silence, nursing his third glass of Firewiskey.   
  
It had taken Sirius an hour and two generous glasses of the amber liquid to get Remus into a semi-functioning state where he would be able to talk to the group of people about to descend on the Burrow. Molly had called an emergency meeting of the Order and they were waiting on Mad Eye and Tonks to arrive before they could start. Bill and Fleur had arrived first, along with Charlie who was home for their wedding, and were sat at the table. Kingsley was the only other member who was present, as everyone else had other pressing business matters to attend to.   
  
Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Fred and George were also in attendance, but only because they had been privy to the events earlier that day as they were reminded by Molly for the third time.  
  
“Remember,” she said sternly wagging her finger at the five faces who were standing in the doorway to the kitchen from the living room, “This does not mean that you’re a part of the Order and can attend further meetings”   
  
“We _know_ mum!” said Ron, exasperated. Hermione simply nodded in agreement, as it did not sit well with her, that Mrs Weasley thought she of all people would disobey an order. Ginny however, did not want to push her luck as she rarely got a chance to be a part of any sort of discussion relating to order business and she was not about to risk losing her place so instead stayed silent.   
  
“But we’re of age!” said Fred and George in unison, “Why can’t we join?”   
  
“Because I am still your mother and I said so!” snapped Mrs Weasley, putting an end to any further discussion. Turning on her heel, she walked back to the kitchen table and sat down next to her husband.   
  
“What’s the matter Hermione?” asked Ginny, peering past George at her friend “Why do you look so nervous? Mum just said we could be here.”  
  
“I know,” whispered Hermione, “I just think Harry should be here too. It feels wrong without him.”  
  
Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Fred and George all exchanged an uncomfortable look. Just as Ron opened his mouth to say something, there was a knock on the kitchen door. Mrs Weasley went over to complete the task of asking for passwords and it was clear that the atmosphere in the room had changed. The meeting was about to start. Ron closed his mouth and looked at Hermione “It’ll be alright” he said unconvincingly, because he agreed with his best friend.

Watching Mad Eye and Tonks take their seats at the table, he thought to himself, _Harry should definitely be here._  
  
  
***   
  
  
Stunned silence filled the kitchen at the Burrow. No one could quite believe what they had just heard. The members of the Order sat completely still, occasionally sharing a glance with each other; though something seemed unusual about some of the shared looks.

“So, you mean to say that Harry has a sister, who is alive, and most likely just down the road from our house?” asked Ron incredulously, breaking the silence. He was still standing in the doorway with Hermione, Ginny, Fred and George. They had not wished to make their presence too known, through fear of being asked to leave.   
  
“That’s right” said Sirius looking over at Ron who had taken a couple of steps forward, thankful the conversation was starting again. He was never fond of an uncomfortable silence.   
  
“Blimey” muttered Ron, looking back at Hermione. They both shared a knowing look. This was going to blindside Harry and they were both worried at what that would look like.   
  
“But wait,” said Hermione, finally finding her voice and looking at the Order members around the table. She took a couple of steps forward to join Ron where he was standing. Everyone at the table looked at her, apart from Remus.   
  
“Why hasn’t anyone said anything about Harry’s sister until now? Why has he never mentioned it to us?” she asked, motioning at herself and Ron.   
  
Remus, now on his fourth glass of Firewiskey and looking a little worse for wear, raised his head and looked at Hermione. “Because,” he croaked, “Because, Harry doesn’t know he has a sister.”  
  
Hermione’s eyes widened with horror, looking frantically at the members of the Order around the table. “What! You mean no one in this room, or Harry, knew he had a sister? How is that possible?”   
  
To her surprise, some of the order members looked away awkwardly, the rest looked puzzled. Remus buried his face in his hands. “Only some of us knew”   
  
Sirius put his hand on Remus’ shoulder. He took a moment to compose himself. He was trying to be strong for his friend but in reality, this was just as hard for him as it was for Remus.   
  
Sirius, taking a deep breath, looked over to Hermione to explain, “Only the original members of the Order knew. We were sworn to secrecy by Dumbledore.”   
  
Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but Ginny got there first. “But Mum, Dad, you weren’t in the original order and it was clear earlier today that you knew what Remus was talking about when he got the letter from Dumbledore.”   
  
Mr and Mrs Weasley looked at their daughter. It was a while before Molly spoke. She had the attention of the whole room and she looked uncomfortable.  
  
“My brother told me, Gideon. He was in the original order and we were always so close. I only told your father when Ron became friends with Harry six years ago” she said, sadly, looking to her husband and then at rest of the order. “I approached Dumbledore in Harry’s first year at Hogwarts and told him that Arthur and I knew. He made us swear not to say anything.”   
  
“This is unbelievable.” said Bill, leaning back in his chair. He ran his hands through his hair and looked at Fleur, his soon to be wife. “Unbelievable.”   
  
“Oui” she said in agreement. Unsure of what else she could say, she took Bill’s hand in hers and gave it a gentle squeeze.   
  
“I can’t believe you knew.” Ron said to his parents.   
  
“And didn’t say anything.” added Ginny, standing next to her brother. “How could you?”   
  
“We didn’t have a choice” said Arthur, looking at his children. He could not quite tell, but the way they were looking at him and Molly was not a look he had ever seen before. Was it disgust?   
  
“A choice?” asked Fred, joining Ron, Hermione and Ginny from the doorway, “Harry has a sister! He has a right to know! Imagine if you gave me or George away when we were born, but didn’t tell us the other existed? I’d be furious! Living my life feeling incomplete? Like something was missing. How do you know Harry doesn’t feel that?” George, stepping forward, nodded in agreement.   
  
“It wasn’t that simple, Fred!” said Sirius, his voice beginning to rise, “It was different back then! We lived in constant fear! Dumbledore was leading the Order and when he gave us an instruction, it was for the safety of our lives. We trusted his word and never asked questions!”   
  
“But! How –”   
  
“Enough!” came the booming voice of Kingsley. “That’s enough.”   
  
The room fell silent. Kingsley looked around the room, until his eyes fell on those of Mad Eye.   
  
“There will be time enough to debate the rights and wrongs of Albus Dumbledore and the existing members of the Order. But!” he said, holding his hand up, silencing the sounds of protest. “Now is not the time.

“While I do think that – even for Dumbledore, this seems quite extreme. I have always, and will always, trust his word. As should all of you. We will get answers but for now, we need to think about Harry. Remus, Sirius, what are the next steps?”   
  
Tonks, who up until now had been in a silent state of shock, looked at Remus who still had his face buried in his hands and gently squeezed his arm. She had so many questions and though frustrated by the total lack of answers, decided to wait until there was a better time to ask. For now, she would try and be as supportive as she could. “Remus?” she whispered, shaking his arm lightly.   
  
Sirius looked at Kingsley and then at Remus and Tonks and took another deep breath. “I don’t know.”   
  
“Well it’s obvious isn’t it?” asked Hermione, “We have to get Harry from the Dursley’s and tell him everything!”. Hermione had started to wring her hands, a nervous habit of hers when she sensed trouble or, more accurately, was involved in something troublesome.   
  
“No.” came Remus’ muffled voice through his hands. “No, I need to see her. We need to be sure.” Remus rubbed his face and then placed both hands on the table either side his glass. He made a movement like he was about to get up but stopped himself.   
  
“No offence mate, but don’t you think waiting until the morning, when you’re not two thirds of the way through a bottle of Firewiskey, would be better?” asked Bill, leaning into the table slightly. He looked up at his brother, who for the entire time this had played out, had been leant against the kitchen sink a few feet from where Remus sat. Charlie made a slight movement, ready to jump in, should Remus need a little assistance in standing up.   
  
“No.” said Remus, more clearly than he had sounded all evening. He looked at Sirius. “No, I need to see her now. Right now.” He took out his wand and waved it, muttering something under his breath. Just like that, the Firewiskey was gone and he looked steady; not at all as though he had been heavily drinking moments before.   
  
“Moony, are you sure?” Sirius asked, eyeing up his friend. A sudden overwhelming feeling had taken a hold of him. Was it nervousness? “Surely, tomorrow will be better? It’s been almost sixteen years. One more night won’t make a difference.”   
  
Remus stood up quickly, making everyone jump. “That’s just it, Padfoot. It’s been sixteen years. I am not wasting one more second.” He said, forcefully.   
  
“But Remus - ” protested Tonks, “why don’t we talk about this first. We could all go together.”   
  
“No!” shouted Remus. Turning away from Tonks, he looked at his best friend. “Please, Padfoot.” The tone in his voice had changed. It wasn’t anger, it was grief.   
  
Sirius looked straight up at Remus and saw the pain in his eyes. A pain he recognised all too well because he had felt it. He was feeling it. Nodding, he stood up and placed a hand on his shoulder.   
  
“Let’s go.”

The two friends started making their way to the back door, when Mad Eye spoke, “Wait.” He barked.   
  
The whole room turned and stared at Moody. For a moment, they had forgotten that he was there as this entire time he had sipped silently from his flask, saying nothing. Moody stood up from where he was sat at the head of the table closest to the back door in the kitchen.   
  
He walked over to Sirius and Remus.   
  
“I know what this means to you, to both of you” he began, almost sounding sympathetic. “But, remain vigilant. This could be a trap. I trusted Dumbledore, but even so, I think one of us should come with you.”   
  
“No Mad Eye,” said Sirius, “This is something we have to do alone.”   
  
Remus nodded. “We’ll still be in sight. We’ll send up red sparks if for some unknown reason, this is a sick and twisted joke and we get into trouble.”   
  
Remus thought about what he had just said and felt nauseous. _What if this was a trap?_   
  
“It’s not a trap, Moony.” muttered Sirius, knowing full well what his best friend was doing. Trying to downplay the enormity of this situation so that he would not start to hope. Sirius could understand that, he hardly dared believe it himself. “We’ll be okay.” He added, mainly to Mad Eye, but glanced around the room at the others, before looking back at Remus.   
  
“Come on. It’s now or never mate.”   
  
With that, the two friends walked out of the back door and down the garden path.   
  
The others, left in the Burrow, all walked to the kitchen window to watch. Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Fred and George could not see past the large group. Ginny motioned to them all to follow her into the living room which had a window looking out to the dusty road and fields. A slightly better view than the kitchen.   
  
They all peered out of the window, watching Sirius and Remus walk down the path. They both turned left onto the dusty road. The Burrow was surrounded by greenery and crop fields, except one, which was home to a few wild horses. The pair continued to walk towards the field with the horses. No one dared breathe.   
  
Finally, Remus and Sirius reached the large field gate and had stopped in front of it. They stayed there for what felt like a lifetime. Suddenly, the gate vanished, and they took a couple of steps forward, disappearing behind some of the bushes and hedges that lined the edge of field entrance.   
  
The occupants of the Burrow, both in the kitchen and the living room waited with bated breath.   
  
There were no red sparks.   
  
Ron and Hermione looked at each other silently. Both pale and with the same wide eyed, slightly panicked look on their faces. They thought the same thing. _How on earth was Harry going to react._


	4. Chapter 4. The Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They both turned back to look at the familiar sight. 
> 
> "Do we... Do we, knock?" asked Remus, unsure of what to do next.

** Chapter 4. The reunion  
  
**

Nervous, anxious and nauseous. That is how Lottie felt, as she paced back and forth in her tent. Truthfully, she felt a multitude of things, but those were the immediate culprits she could identify.   
  
She looked at her watch, it was getting late and she could feel the tiredness beginning to wash over her. She had been awake for three days now.   
  
“No.” she said to herself, rubbing her face. “Charlotte Lily Potter, you stay awake!”   
  
She walked from the living space, through the kitchen and into the bathroom, turned on the taps and splashed her face with cold water. Turning the taps off, she took a towel and dabbed gently to dry up the excess water. She stared at herself in the mirror. Her wide, almond shaped hazel eyes stared back at her. It was the one thing she liked about herself. They were almost amber in colour, particularly noticeable in the sun. She had pale, soft skin and long blonde hair that fell to her waist in gentle waves.   
  
Her father had always said she was beautiful, like her mother, but Lottie did not agree. No one was as beautiful as her mother. She felt a pang of sadness and felt her eyes prickle. What she would give to have them here with her. She blinked a few times, sighed deeply and placed the towel back on the rack.   
  
She walked back out into the main area of the tent stifling a yawn and looked her cat, who was watching her intently from the sofa. “What?” she asked him, walking over to scratch behind his ears. “Don’t look at me like that, Oscar. How will I know that they’ve come, if I’m asleep?”   
  
Oscar simply squeaked and leant into the ear scratch.   
  
Lottie smiled and sat down. She leant back into the comfy sofa and stroked Oscars gorgeous, long, ginger fur. Seizing the opportunity, Oscar stood up, stretched his front paws out and gently climbed onto her lap and curled up. _Cutie._ Oscar had been her constant companion since she was five, the one consistent presence in her life. He had been a birthday present for her fifth birthday. The best and last birthday she had ever had. She remembered the day fondly; how she had been brought downstairs into the family living room and was sat on the sofa. Her mother and father had told her to keep her eyes shut and then before she knew it, a small furball had been plonked into her arms. He was a young kitten when they got him. How life had changed them both.   
  
She did often wonder if he was part Kneazle, as he was now fifteen years old and was showing no signs of ageing but tried not to dwell on that thought too much. She could not bear the idea of losing him too.   
  
Her mind began to wander, as she absentmindedly stroked her fluffy companion, who was now sound asleep. She started to think about why she was here, literally and figuratively. Shaking her head, she tried to distract herself.   
  
She looked around her tent, the place that she had called home for six years. She had been in foster care for nine years but ran away as soon as she had turned fourteen. She had been on her own ever since. In the time she had been on her own, she had turned this tent into somewhere she was comfortable and more importantly, safe. It was separated into three parts; a living room, bedroom, and a kitchen/bathroom area. The layout had never changed, it was a tent owned by her parents, but the décor certainly had. What was once a beige canvas, was now a pale cream. She remembered with a smile, the day she had learnt how to finally change the colour with magic. It had immediately changed the entire feel of the place from drab and dreary to something that felt much lighter and brighter. There were enchanted fairy lights everywhere, that she turned on every evening with a light tap. They hung around the top edges of the tent, some what haphazardly, but she thought it looked nice. The best part was where the tent raised in the middle, somewhere between a tipi and a turret, the she had enchanted them to hang down, and join up to the edges in a circular fashion so that she had her own special chandelier of light. Between the fairy lights and small lamps dotted around the place, they were her only source of light at night. She did not mind though, it made the place feel cosy.   
  
On the floor in the main living area, there was her giant pale pink, shaggy rug. Around the room, were piles of books and a few small tables with various trinkets and objects on them. The sofa she sat on was a pale grey, with pale pink and pale blue cushions. It was a theme throughout the tent. She looked to right, where her bedroom was. She had hung net curtains, that crossed the entire width of the tent, sectioning it off from the rest of the space. She would tie them back usually, but she liked the option of having privacy. Behind the curtains stood a white, double bed, with a wrought iron frame. Her bed was probably her favourite thing. She had spent a considerable amount of time finding the right bedding, cushions, pillows and throws to make it into a space she adored. Again, everything here was white and pale pink. The usual things were there too, a floor length mirror, dressing table and wardrobe. Simple.   
  
To the right of where she was sitting was the very basic, yet functioning kitchen. She was not much of a cook, or an eater, so very little happened here. There was a small kitchen table and two chairs, that she occasionally sat at with a cup of coffee, but for the most part, they were left untouched. Just off from the kitchen was the bathroom. A small, but bright place. She had the usual toilet and sink, above which was a mirror. The only thing she had really worked on was the bath. A beautiful, deep, claw footed bath sat in the room, with candles on the floor around it and a shower head that she used for washing her hair.   
  
Lottie brought herself back into the main living area. Directly in front of her was the entrance to the tent. She stared at it for a while and then, unable to hold the thoughts off any longer, remembered why she was here in the first place and just like that, she felt nervous, anxious and nauseous again.   
  
***   
  
Remus and Sirius stood in silence, shoulder to shoulder, staring at the field gate in front of them.   
  
Suddenly the full weight of the situation, crashed down on Sirius. “Remus?” he half asked, half whispered, running his hands through his hair with a slightly wild look on his face. “What are we doing? How are we going to do this? What if it **is** a trap? Merlin how are we going to tell Harry. Remus, I-”  
  
“Shh!” hissed Remus, looking into the field and then back at his friend. “Sirius, I don’t know!” 

  
They both examined the field again, squinting through the dark.   
  
“Is that…?” Sirius asked, leaning forward into his squint.   
  
“A tent.” Remus replied simply. His body seemed to reverberate with the range of emotions he was feeling. Fear, anger, nervousness, sadness… hope. He looked at Sirius, he was feeling the same.   
  
“I suppose there is only one thing to do.” Said Remus, quietly. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Sirius nodding.   
  
Sirius raised his wand and the gate vanished. Remus mimicked him and held his wand out. As the same time, they whispered ‘Lumos’ and started to walk forward in the direction of the tent. The closer they got, the more they could make out the shape. It was not your average tent, it was much larger, almost like a rectangular box, except for the top. Where the canvas walls of the tent stopped, the top of the tent sloped up and inwards. Somewhere between the shape of a turret and a tipi. When they were both close enough to see the tent and the faint, warm glow emanating from it, they stopped dead in their tracks. They recognised this tent.   
  
“Sirius!” whispered Remus, a tremor in his voice. “Sirius, that’s-”  
  
“James’ tent!” They whispered in unison, turning to look at each other. Neither one spoke for a moment, hardly daring to believe it. They had not seen this tent in over twenty years. They both turned back to look at the familiar sight.   
  
“Do we… Do we, knock?” asked Remus.  
  
Sirius shook his head and held his left arm in front of Remus and brought a finger up to his lips, signalling him to stay quiet. Sirius took a step forward and took a deep breath. They were halfway between the fence and the tent, somewhat exposed. Especially as the wild horses had walked away from them as soon as they had entered the field.   
  
“Who’s there?” he shouted, as loudly as his nerves would allow, “This is private property! You cannot camp here!”  
  
Sirius’ voice seemed to echo throughout the field. He braced himself for an attack, even though in the back of his mind, he knew it was not coming. He was joined by Remus, who like Sirius, had his wand pointing at the entrance of the tent.   
  
***   
  
Lottie was deep in thought when she heard it.   
  
“Who’s there? This is private property! You cannot camp here!”  
  
She jumped up, her skin feeling like an electric current was coursing through her. Her heart was beating loudly. Oscar was thrown, unceremoniously from her lap, but instead of hissing at her like he normally would have done, his fur puffed out and tail stood upright like a bottle brush and fixed his eyes on the entrance to the tent.   
  
She stood still, trying to regain her senses and control her breathing.   
  
“Shit” she whispered. She took a deep breath. There was no way it was a muggle; she had charmed the tent with a muggle repelling charm. It had to be someone else. She took a step forward, there had been attacks recently, more and more in fact. What if it was a death eater?  
  
She glanced over one of the small tables where her sneakoscope and secrecy sensor were – neither of which indicated that something was wrong.   
  
Then it hit her. Could it be them? Could it be the reason she was here in the first place? She did not recognise the voice but then, it had been almost sixteen years. Or maybe they had sent someone else.  
  
Well it was now or never otherwise the last six years would have been for nothing.   
  
Lottie started to approach the entrance to the tent. Oscar, sensing that his owner had relaxed, cautiously followed behind her. She stopped, just short of the canvas door and took a deep breath. _You can do this.  
  
_ Her hand, trembling slightly, raised and grasped the edge of the tent door. She pulled it back slowly and when nothing immediately happened, she fixed it to the side of the tent. She could feel the blood pulsing in her ears as she took a step outside of the tent. She peered into the darkness, letting her eyes adjust to the lack of light. Over in the distance, somewhere between her and the field gate, she could see two outlines.   
  
“Who’s there?” she asked, her voice betraying her and showing her fear.   
  
She waved her hand and a string of fairy lights on the outside of her tent lit up. She waved it again and the light grew brighter, casting light out into the field and just enough so that she could make out the outlines. It was two people. Two very familiar people.   
  
Lottie sucked in her breath, her eyes were wide and raised her hand over her mouth. She knew this was coming, that she would eventually see them, but even so. Seeing them now, right there, barely twenty metres away stunned her.   
  
“Oh my god…” she whispered, barely audible. Her eyes began to sting.   
  
***   
  
Remus and Sirius stood in silence, wands still aloft. There had been a long wait between Sirius shouting and finally seeing movement. The entrance to the tent moved ever so slightly and the light from within flickered as someone inside walked in front of the gap. The canvas door peeled back slowly and then stayed open.   
  
Gradually, a figure emerged, who was hard to make out at first. Both men squinted.   
  
“Who’s there?” came the figure’s trembling voice.   
  
Soft lights appeared along the edge of the tent and then suddenly grew brighter. They watched as the girl before them raised her hand to her mouth as they both gasped.  
  
Remus and Sirius stood there for a moment, mouths slightly open in shock and then at the same time they said, “Lottie”.   
  
“Lottie?” Remus called.  
  
The girl’s hand dropped to her side and she just nodded.  
  
“Oh my god,” murmured Sirius.   
  
Simultaneously, Remus and Sirius broke into a half walk, half run. Lottie did the same and somewhere in the middle, they crashed into each other with a thud. Remus put his arms around her, pulling her close while Sirius put one arm around Remus and the other around Lottie.   
  
“Oh Charlotte,” Remus said thickly, tears threatening to fall “My little Lottie.”  
  
Lottie let out a sob, allowing herself to be held properly for the first time in years. She clutched at her Godfather’s robes with one hand and grabbed hold of Sirius with the other; never, ever wanting to let go.   
  
Sirius felt Lottie’s small hand wrap around the arm he had around Remus. He could feel his eyes prickling, so instead of saying anything, he just squeezed them both tighter into the hug.   
  
***   
  
Back at the burrow, everyone had congregated in the living room as they soon realised the view to the field was much better there. The only problem was that there was nothing to see. Remus and Sirius had only been gone for fifteen minutes, yet people were starting to worry.   
  
“Should we go over?” asked Molly, looking nervously out of the window and then at her husband. She was perched on the arm of his chair.   
  
“No, Molly dear” replied Arthur, taking her hand and squeezing it. “There haven’t been any red sparks.”   
  
“Yes but what if they didn’t have time to react” she asked, looking out of the window once more.   
  
“Molly, I am sure that they are alright – this can’t be easy for them, give them some more time.” said Kingsley reassuringly.   
  
“Yes, but what if they are being watched, or there are death eaters around? Our protective spells only cover the Burrow!” she said, her voice rising. “Then everyone would be at risk!” Molly waved her arm around the room, indicating to those around her.   
  
“Molly makes a good point, Shacklebolt” came Mad Eye’s voice from the kitchen. He had stayed there as it was closest to the door just in case Remus and Sirius needed help. Besides which, with a magical eye, he did not need a ‘good view’. He limped into the living room, and everyone turned to look at him.   
  
“I see no reason why they have to reunite in a field when there’s a perfectly good garden for them to do the same” he said, leaning against the door frame and looking at Kingsley “They can still have their privacy, but under the protection of the order.”   
  
Molly looked at Arthur nervously and then at Mad Eye. She was not exactly suggesting that Harry’s long-lost sister move into the garden, but she stayed silent.   
  
Kingsley looked thoughtful and after a while said, “Yes, I suppose you’re right.” He took out his wand and walked from the living room, into the kitchen and out of the back door. Mad Eye watched him wave his wand and speak to the ball of light that had appeared. With another flick, the ball rose and shot off in the direction of the field.   
  
Everyone in the living room watched the glowing ball of light shoot down towards the end of dusty road and disappear behind the hedges.   
  
Kingsley walked back into the living room. “If all is well, they should be back soon” he announced to the room.   
  
“The sooner the better,” muttered Mad Eye, “I’m collecting Potter tomorrow.”   
  
Everyone in the room exchanged uncomfortable looks.   
  
Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Fred and George, who were huddled together looked at each other nervously. Neither one wanting to meet Harry’s sister before he did. 


	5. Chapter 5. The

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Nothing. I just want to wait for Harry. He is the reason I am here.”
> 
> There was no denying that the last comment had stung Remus and Sirius.

**Chapter 5. The Reason**

  
It was a while before they broke their embrace. It was Sirius who moved first, stepping backwards slightly before raising his hand affectionately to Lottie’s head.   
  
At his touch, Lottie lifted her tear-streaked face to look at him. She tilted her head to the left slightly and placed a hand over his, sniffing. _Oh how she looks like Lily,_ thought Sirius, _but with James’ eyes._ And he was right. Lottie had the same heart shaped face, high cheekbones and other features just like her mother. If her eyes were green and her hair a deep auburn, they would be the spitting image of each other. However, Lottie had blonde hair and her eyes were a deep hazel, like her fathers.   
  
“Oh Lottie,” he said, wiping away a falling tear from her cheek, a little more confident in his own voice now. “How?” he breathed, then clearing his throat, “How is this possible?”   
  
Remus looked at Lottie, who was staring up at Sirius and placed both his hands gently on the tops of her shoulders. “We thought you were… we thought you’d…” he mumbled, not really wanting to say the word. She met his eyes.   
  
“Died?” she asked quietly, “I know.” Lottie looked down at the grass and then looked back up at them. The sound of her voice was so familiar and yet so different.   
  
_What’s that accent?_ Remus thought. _Is that American?  
_  
The trio stayed silent, the only sound was the gentle rustling of the nearby crops and hedges. Suddenly, a bright orb appeared next to them making them jump. Remus and Sirius raised their wands again and stepped in front of Lottie, shielding her from the orb. They looked around the field waiting, but then a sound they recognised came from the light and they both relaxed.   
  
**Come back to the Burrow. You are not safe in that field.** **All three of you.**   
  
It was Kingsley’s voice. Remus and Sirius exchanged looks.   
  
“He has a point Padfoot,” Remus said, looking around and then back at Lottie, “We’re exposed here.”   
  
“We could relocate to the garden,” He agreed, looking at Lottie and then to the tent. “I’m sure Molly wouldn’t mind.”   
  
Remus nodded, though not completely convinced.   
  
Lottie watched them. She could hear what they were thinking, and she was not overly comfortable with the idea. But, then again, it was one step closer to the only thing that had kept her going. _Harry._ So, when Sirius and Remus looked at her anxiously, she just shrugged.   
  
“I guess I’ll gather my things.” She murmured, turning away from them.   
  
Sirius and Remus watched as Lottie raised her right hand to the same level of her shoulder and then grasped the air in front of her, bringing her hand into a fist. What they saw, confused them. The entire tent began to fold in on itself, slowly dismantling. As it did, a rucksack came shooting out of the tent into her left hand, followed by a disgruntled Oscar, who landed at her feet. The tent, now fully folded, rose and levitated towards them. Lottie plucked it out of the air and shoved it into the small, black, suede rucksack. She pulled the drawstrings together tightly and lifted the flap over which connected with the bag with a satisfying click.   
  
Lottie sighed deeply and bent over, scooping up Oscar from the grass. Standing upright, she looked at Sirius and Remus. “Okay, I’m – What?” she asked them, looking at their puzzled frowns and knowing what was coming.   
  
“Where’s your wand?” Remus asked, looking at her hands.   
  
“I don’t have a wand.” she replied simply.   
  
“But how did you do that?” asked Sirius, motioning to the now empty space where the tent once sat.   
  
The hint of a smile tugged at the corner of her lip. “Magic.” She said with a shrug and swinging her bag over her shoulder, began walking towards the gate.   
  
Remus and Sirius did not follow immediately, but instead hung back and looked at each other.   
  
“Dumbledore wasn’t lying, was he?” muttered Sirius, raising his eyebrows.   
  
“Apparently not, Padfoot.” Remus said slowly, watching his goddaughter walking away.   
  
Lottie stopped and turned around, “Are you coming?” she asked tentatively.   
  
“Yes, of course.” said Remus, walking forwards.   
  
Sirius followed before he stopped again, suddenly realising something. “Wait a second… is that _Oscar_?” he asked in an astonished voice. 

  
*** 

  
“There.” said Bill, raising his hand and pointing out of the window. “They’re coming back”   
  
Kingsley sighed in relief as Mad Eye puffed out a bit of air. They caught each other’s eye and grimaced. Neither of them would ever admit it, but they had, for a small moment, doubted Dumbledore,   
  
Everyone else just simply turned to look out of the window. Fred, George and Ginny stepped forward to join the group at the window. When Ron made a move, Hermione grabbed his arm.   
  
“What?” he asked, looking at her hand on his forearm and then back up at his best friend.   
  
“Ron, this is wrong.” She whispered.  
  
“I know,” he whispered back, “but aren’t you curious, you of all people?”   
  
“Of course I am!” she hissed, “but that doesn’t make it okay. Harry is going to be so hurt and confused.”  
  
“I know he is, but isn’t it better that we find out as much as we can now, so that we can help him when he finds out?” Ron asked, quietly. “Come on.” Ron walked over to the window to join the others.   
  
He had a point, she couldn’t deny that. “If he even let’s us…” she muttered to herself, following Ron to the window.   
  
  
***  
  
Sirius, Remus and Lottie had walked the short distance between the field and the Burrow in an awkward silence. No one knew what to say. After explaining that it was indeed Oscar, the conversation had stopped short.   
  
Lottie felt slightly disappointed, which was odd, because she had not really known what to expect. How can you be disappointed by something unknown? Maybe it was sadness. She was never one for feeling her ‘feelings’ or to that point, being able to properly identify them. She could in others, it came to her so easily. She could tell what anyone was thinking or feeling at the drop of a hat. Maybe that was why it was so hard for her to do the same for herself.   
  
Sirius stopped unexpectedly, causing her to nearly walk into him, and held his arm out. He placed it on something and then suddenly, a gate came into view, followed by everything that was behind it. Lottie’s eyes grew wide.   
  
She had known magical dwellings, she was no stranger to her world, but this was unlike anything else she had ever seen. It was… beautiful.   
  
It was hard to make out all the details because of how dark it was, but she could make out the Burrow. It was clear that this was a home. A well-loved, well lived in, home. _I can’t wait to see what this looks like in the light,_ she thought to herself. She felt a pang of something. Was it jealousy?   
  
“This is the Burrow,” said Remus softly, holding open the gate for her, breaking her thoughts.   
  
Lottie looked at him and then back at the Burrow. She took a few steps forward and then stopped. She was joined by Remus and Sirius, who stood either side of her.   
  
“Is Harry in there?” she asked, staring intently at the house.   
  
At the sound of Harry’s name, Sirius felt a jolt in his chest. For the past day, he had not thought about this too closely until that very moment and now, it was all he could think of. He thought of how Harry was going to feel. How Lottie was currently feeling. How as a foursome, they were going to have to fight to navigate through this utter chaos that had been dropped into their lives by someone who was now dead.   
  
“No, he’s not” said Remus, bringing everyone back into the present. “He’ll be here tomorrow.”   
  
Lottie’s heart did something between a palpitation and a flip. _Tomorrow_. Finally, after all these years of pain and anguish, she just had to wait a few more hours.   
  
“Tomorrow.” She repeated, quietly, not taking her eyes off the Burrow. “What time?”   
  
Remus looked at Sirius and frowned. “Six o’clock.” he said. Something had changed.   
  
“Okay.” said Lottie, in the same quiet tone. She could hear their thoughts and did not like them. She felt another emotion brewing. “Can I set up my tent here?”  
  
She looked at them both and motioned to the ground around them.   
  
“Well, why don’t you come in for a bit?” asked Sirius, “Meet everyone.”   
  
“No, thank you.” replied Lottie, in a clipped yet polite tone. “I’ll just set up here, if you’re sure that’s alright with the owners?” she motioned her head towards the Burrow.   
  
“Yes it’s fine but Lottie, what’s the matter?” enquired Remus.   
  
“The matter?” she asked, in a quiet, dangerous tone. Sirius stifled a shudder. She sounded exactly like Lily when she was about to shout at James for doing something wrong. “Nothing. I just want to wait for Harry. He is the reason I am here.”   
  
There was no denying that the last comment had stung Remus and Sirius. Lottie could feel it.   
  
“But,” said Remus cautiously, “Lottie, this is a lot for everyone to take in. We haven’t seen you in sixteen years. I want to…”   
  
“You want to what, Remus?” she asked quietly, fiddling with Oscar’s collar. “Talk?”   
  
Lottie looked up at him and then at Sirius. Sirius flinched slightly when her eyes locked with his. _Here it comes_ , he thought.   
  
“We can talk, Remus.” she said, leaning down and placing Oscar on the grass, “We can talk about Harry. About how he’s going to feel this time tomorrow. Shall we talk about that?”   
  
Remus and Sirius stood stock still. Lottie continued.   
  
“No? Don’t want to talk about that?” she asked, with a dangerous calm “Alright, I’ll tell you then. He is going to feel awful. This is going to tear him apart. Has no one thought about that? About how agonising the feeling of betrayal will be for him?”  
  
Silence.   
  
Lottie scoffed as she opened her bag and pulled out the tent. “Of course not. No one does. Not when it’s for the greater good.” She said, anger now lacing her words.   
  
“Well I do. Hell, I’ve lived it, for sixteen years” she spat at them. “So forgive me, if I don’t want to play any further part in it than I already have. I will not go into that house and sit down with everyone in it and tell you everything until Harry is sat at that table too. Because more than anyone, he deserves to know first.”   
  
She flung the tent to the ground, waved her arm and turned her back on the two men who stood, dumbfounded, behind her.   
  
“Lottie!” protested Remus, finding his voice, “We weren’t going to ask you to do that!”   
  
Lottie turned her head and looked straight at her godfather. “Don’t you think you’ve told enough lies? That is exactly what was going to happen” she said, “Don’t lie to me.”   
  
The tent was nearly upright. “I’ve had enough lies for a lifetime.” She added, quietly.   
  
Remus stood there, unable to speak. Waves of different emotions were crashing down over him. His heart was breaking. He had helped do this to her. To make her feel this way.   
  
Sirius opened his mouth to say something, anything, that might help but closed it again. She was right. There was nothing he could add that would make any of it less true.   
  
Lottie bent down to pick up Oscar, who for the entire time, had sat next to her feet and stepped towards her tent. “Six o’clock?” she asked, confirming the hour for tomorrow.   
  
Remus and Sirius just nodded.   
  
“I will see you at five to,” she said, pulling back the tent door. “Let me know if I need to move this” she added, nodding her head at the tent before disappearing. The tent door sealed behind her.   
  
Sirius and Remus stood there for a moment staring at the door before they looked at each other with matching looks of concern. Sirius worried for his friend and for Harry, this was not going to be an easy couple of days.   
  
“Come on mate,” said Sirius, placing a hand on Remus’ shoulder and pulling it slightly, “let’s go back to the others.”   
  
“But Sirius –” mumbled Remus, looking back to the tent.   
  
“Not tonight Moony,” he muttered, “Come on. You need a drink. We both do.”   
  
Remus allowed himself to be steered back to the kitchen. He needed more than one.   
  
  
***   
  
  
From the kitchen in the Burrow, everyone was watching intently at the conversation happening outside. It was like a silent film.   
  
They watched the interactions, which did not always come across as friendly. They watched the tent go up.   
  
“Woah” said Fred and George in unison.   
  
“That’s some tent.” added Bill.   
  
Molly made a noise, somewhere between disdain and dread. Bill and Fleur’s wedding was in a week and that tent could not be there on the day.   
  
“I’m sure it can come down for the day, Molly” Arthur whispered in her ear, recognising the sound. Molly nodded.   
  
“She iz very pretty” commented Fleur, looking out of the window. “She does not look like ‘er bruzzah, non? Eh bien, I suppose she iz very thin, like ‘arry.”   
  
No one commented, especially not Bill, who knew better. But everyone silently agreed.   
  
Ginny, Ron and Hermione peered through a gap to get a better look.   
  
“They’re coming back, but where’s Charlotte going?” asked Hermione.   
  
The group watched as Sirius and Remus walked back to the Burrow. Sirius had his hand on Remus’ shoulder.   
  
Tonk’s bit her lip. That did not look like a good sign.   
  
Molly suddenly came to her senses and whipped around and hissed at everyone, “Move! Act natural, we don’t want them thinking that we were prying!” she flapped a tea towel around in everyone’s general direction. Everyone began to scatter, looking for something to occupy themselves with.   
  
Ginny rolled her eyes. _But we were prying,_ Mum, she thought. Nevertheless, she joined Kingsley, Ron and Hermione in the living room, pretending to be interested in a book Hermione was holding. _Has she been carrying that the entire time_ , Ginny asked herself. _Probably_.   
  
The back door to the kitchen opened and in came Sirius and Remus, looking miserable. Molly was the first to speak. "Well, how did it go?” she asked, nervously.   
  
“Remus, are you alright?” asked Tonks, walking from the edge of the kitchen where she had been pretending to read a cookery book.   
  
Remus said nothing and sat down at the kitchen table, where Mad Eye, Bill, Fleur and Charlie were already sat. Kingsley, Ron, Hermione and Ginny all appeared from the living room. All eyes went to Sirius.   
  
“It went…” began Sirius.   
  
“Horribly.” croaked Remus, his eyes fixed on a part of the kitchen table.   
  
“She’s angry. Very angry and very hurt and she’s not making an appearance until Harry gets here.” Summarised Sirius, snatching the bottle of Firewiskey from the kitchen side. He sat down next to Remus and summoned two glasses and poured them out two big measures.   
  
“Well do you blame her?” asked Hermione, quietly.   
  
Everyone shot her a look, but no one reprimanded her. Hermione blushed but did not apologise. She did however, feel slightly sorry for Charlotte because in all this time she had been thinking about Harry, she had not once thought of how she would be taking it. It could not be easy.   
  
“Well,” said Mad Eye, leaning forward in his chair, “I suppose we wait until tomorrow then.”   
  
“I suppose we do.” said Kingsley, solemnly. The atmosphere in the kitchen was tense. No one was looking forward to it.   
  
“Pass the firewiskey, Sirius” said Charlie, summoning more glasses. “I think we could all use a drink.”   
  
  
***   
  
  
Harry looked at the clock on his desk; it was almost midnight. He smiled. Twelve more hours and he would be out of his place for good. Reunited with his friends and his family. He tried to ignore the fact that he had not heard from anyone that summer and just tried to focus the idea of finally leaving the Dursley’s. It worked. His heart fluttered and he truly felt happy.   
  
“Not long now, Hedwig” he said, walking over to his owl. He unlatched the cage and held out his arm. Hedwig talons gripped his arm and Harry carried her over to the window. It was still somewhat warm out so he could leave his window open for her to return.   
  
“Don’t be too long, we leave in twelve hours.” Harry told her, stroking her head. He knew she would be back long before it was light out, but he just wanted to say it again. Hedwig nipped at him affectionately before she took flight.   
  
Harry watched her fondly before turning his back to the window and looking around at his room. He was packed and ready to go and had been since Mad Eye had called. He took off his glasses and got into bed. He tossed and turned a little before he found a comfortable position. _Twelve hours,_ he thought to himself, _and if I’m really lucky, I’ll get to sleep for seven of them, meaning I’ll only have to suffer it here for a further five. I can do that._  
  
On that thought, with a slight smile still playing on his lips, he fell into a restful sleep, completely unaware of what lay ahead.   
  



	6. Chapter 6. The First Step

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As she took the first step over the threshold, her eyes grew wide as she took in the sheer volume of people in the small kitchen.
> 
> “An audience,” she mused, under her breath. “Wonderful.”

**Chapter 6. The First Step.**   
  
Lottie was lying on the sofa with Oscar curled up on her chest. She watched as he slowly moved up and down with each inhale and exhale. She was reflecting on the encounter from yesterday evening; it had not gone well.   
  
It was now daylight, somewhere around the mid-afternoon mark. She had been awake since leaving Sirius and Remus the night before which now made it four days of no sleep. She could feel the effects starting to take place. Everything felt slightly displaced and oddly cold, almost like an out of body experience.   
  
She was confused by her own feelings and reactions. She had thought that it would have been a much more sentimental reunion but instead it was anti-climactic and quite frankly awkward. Not only that, the second she had heard their thoughts, something in her snapped. The same way it had done when she got that visit from Dumbledore a year ago. Only that time it had been much worse. She shook the memory from her mind.   
  
She was angry. But Oscar kept her grounded. She could hardly flounce or get upset and throw things while he lay there on her chest. She did not dare disturb his slumber. Instead she took comfort from the rhythmic motion of her breathing and his gentle movements as a result, watching and counting them one by one.   
  
_Not long,_ she thought to herself, _not long until the truth is out._   
  
She looked at the nearby clock, it was four o’clock. She felt a pang of emotion. Nervousness mixed with misery with just a hint of hope. She could not deny how tough life was about to become but then again, she was no stranger to it. She felt nervous because she was about to see her brother for the first time in sixteen years, miserable because of the circumstances and hopeful because it meant that maybe, there was a way forward. But only time would tell.  
  
 _I should get ready,_ she thought to herself and then scoffed.   
  
What difference did it make if she was made up and well presented? This was still going to be insanely difficult to explain and navigate. Would they even notice, or care?   
  
_Either way_ , Lottie thought to herself, _it is best that I make as good of an impression as possible._  
  
She shifted slightly, scratching Oscar behind the ears to gently wake him. “Come on, darling” she mumbled, “I have to start getting ready.”   
  
Oscar slowly made movements before getting up and stretching out. A small ‘omph!” came out of Lottie as he stretched, putting all his weight on her diaphragm. Oscar eventually leapt off her chest and sauntered over to his water bowl. Lottie stayed there for a moment outstretched and watched Oscar walk. _To be that carefree,_ she thought to herself before slowly pulling herself upright. She reluctantly got up from the sofa and made her way to the bathroom to draw a bath and as she did, waved her hand so that Oscar’s food bowl filled up.  
  
 _Maybe I’ll have a moments peace this time,_ she thought to herself, knowing full well that the second she entered the bathroom, Oscar would be on her heels.

***   
  
Hardly anyone had spoken all day. Breakfast and lunch were silent affairs, with only the sound of plates and cutlery cutting through the obvious air of tension. Remus and Sirius had both stayed the night and had slept in the living room, not wanting to be far from Lottie even if she did not want to be around them.  
  
Everyone was now downstairs playing the waiting game, trying to distract themselves with menial activities whilst every now and again stealing a glance at the time. Three o’clock came, then four o’clock and now it was nearly five in the afternoon. The rest of the order would be joining them sometime between five and Harry’s arrival at just after six o’clock. No one wanted to miss the reasoning behind the mystery, but no one was looking forward to it either.   
  
Fred and George were huddled one corner of the living room, pretending to look over business papers, but there was no need; Weasley’s Wizarding Wheezes was doing very well at the moment, considering the circumstances.  
  
A lot of Diagon Alley was closed for business, through fear of being approached by You-Know-Who and his band of Death Eaters. Ever since Dumbledore’s death, atrocious crimes and activities were on the rise. People thought it was just like last time and so, not wanting to fight another war, started fleeing and going into hiding.   
  
Ron, Ginny and Hermione were huddled in another corner, the two siblings engaged half-heartedly in a game of chess on the floor whilst Hermione read a book in the armchair. Crookshanks was curled up on her lap and her eyes were fixed on her book but they showed no signs of movement to say she was actually reading the pages. She and Ron had had a brief and hushed discussion last night about the whole saga unfolding in front of them but came to the same conclusion that they would have to wait until Harry arrived to actually feel like they were able to help.   
  
Remus, Sirius, Charlie and Fleur were all sat at the kitchen table, holding cups of tea, wishing it were something stronger to calm their nerves. Mrs Weasley was bustling around the kitchen anxiously. She had started to prepare dinner, ignoring the fact that she was certain people were not going to be hungry when it was time to eat. It soothed her however, so she carried on. She charmed the kitchen knife so that it started chopping the vegetables whilst she started preparing drinks for everyone’s arrival.   
  
She got out the butterbeers, whiskey, mead and some elf made wine and placed them on the little drinks table in the kitchen that she reserved only for when she had guests for a party. Though this absolutely bore no resemblance whatsoever to a party. She drew her wand and a jug, ice and bottle came soaring towards her. She filled the jug with ice, charmed it so it would not melt, and then poured in the pumpkin juice.   
  
Hearing the clink of bottles, the occupants of the kitchen table looked up and made movements to help themselves.   
  
“No.” said Mrs Weasley sternly, without even looking behind her. “You wait until everyone gets here or you’ll all be pickled.”   
  
Remus, Sirius, Charlie and Fleur all sat back down. _She has a point,_ thought Charlie, glancing over at Remus and Sirius who both looked pale and in need of a stiff drink.   
  
Suddenly, making them all jump, the great grandfather clock whirred with activity and they watched as the hands for Mr Weasley and Bill moved to ‘travelling’ before landing on ‘home’. Mrs Weasley looked out of the kitchen window to see her husband and eldest son walking up the path towards the house. They passed the tent on their way and Molly felt a pang of sadness in her chest. _Those poor children,_ she thought, placing her hand just below her neck and thinking of Harry’s imminent arrival, _they’ve been through so much._   
  
“Charlie, dear” said Mrs Weasley, still looking at the tent in the garden, “go and greet your brother and father, would you?” she asked.   
  
“Sure, Mum.” replied Charlie, getting up from the table and taking out his wand. It felt so strange to point his wand at his father and brother in defence, but these were dark times.   
  
Fleur watched him go to the back door and then looked at Remus and Sirius, “Well?” she asked them quietly, “ ‘ave you thought about how you are going to tell ‘arry?”   
  
Both men looked over to her and shook their heads. “Well you ‘ad better come up wiz something soon. ‘e will be ‘ere in less zan forty minutes.” She said, briskly getting up to greet Bill. “Bonjour, mon amour!” she said enthusiastically, kissing him on both cheeks, “ ‘ow was your day?”   
  
Remus and Sirius watched her bustle around Bill, scowling slightly; they were perfectly aware of how much time they had until Harry arrived that evening. But they were not the only ones that had been in a hushed discussion last night. They had stayed up long after everyone else had gone to bed and had talked at great length about all the ways that they could approach the situation. Somewhere around three o’clock in the morning, they had decided to just wing it and hope for the best.   
  
Mrs Weasley was fixing her husband a drink, which signalled to the rest of the group that it was okay to approach the drinks table. Hearing that Bill and Mr Weasley had arrived, the rest of the Weasley children and Hermione joined them in the kitchen.   
  
“Hey Dad, Bill” said Ron, nodding his head towards his brother.   
  
“Hi kids,” said Mr Weasley, looking at the troop that had just walked in, before looking back at his wife who was handing him a butterbeer, “Thank you Molly, dear. Any idea of when we can expect the rest” he asked, looking around the room, clearly talking about the order.   
  
“Soon, I expect” replied Mrs Weasley with a weak smile.   
  
The air felt like it had thickened.   
  
Sirius nudged Remus with his elbow. “Start on a butterbeer and see how we go?” he muttered, eyeing up the drinks table.   
  
Remus simply nodded. As it got closer and closer to six o’clock, he felt the ability to have, let alone hold a conversation, grow less and less. He had not slept well last night so did not feel on top form but could at least be thankful that it had been well over a week since the full moon, so he did not have that to contend with.   
  
His mind however was racing. He was playing the last two days over and over in his mind. The memories from sixteen years ago had come flooding back to him. It made him feel sick. The clonk of a bottle in front of him broke him from his thoughts. He gave his best friend a feeble smile and picked up the bottle and took a sip. “Still want to wing it?” he heard his friend mutter under his breath. Remus nodded. It was the best plan they had.   
  
***  
  
Lottie looked at herself in the mirror. She felt much better after having a bath and washing her hair. She was now dressed and had dried her hair properly, so it was no longer a wild, untamed mess. She decided to wear it down tonight, as she had had it scraped up into a knot last night and thought she could probably do with making a bit of an effort for meeting her brother for the first time in nearly sixteen years.   
  
Her blonde hair fell in layered waves around her. She inspected the make up on her face. Not too much, but just enough so that the dark shadows under her eyes were not visible. She had put on shades of brown and gold eyeshadow, which was just enough to really bring out the hazel colour of her eyes. She had inherited her mother’s eyelashes, which were long and thick and now had a coat of mascara on.   
  
She took stock of her appearance. She looked quite pretty, except for the way her clothes hung around her. She was already slim, it ran in the family, but she had her demons that she battled with. The battle with anorexia first started when she was fourteen but after a four-year fight with it and with the help of her only friend, she managed to win the fight. However, about a year ago, something switched in her. It was around the time she had that visit from Albus Dumbledore. It was then that she was plagued with the familiar compulsive thoughts and obsessive behaviours and found herself falling back into habit.   
  
This time around, Lottie had convinced herself that this was not the same situation as before, that this was only happening because of all the chaos. She was certain that once she finally got to sit with Harry and explain everything, that it would all go back to normal. She was sure of it. _I’m not relapsing,_ she thought to herself. _I’ve got it under control._   
  
Even still, she waved her hand and watched in the mirror as her body filled out ever so slightly. Her collarbones were no longer protruding out of her skin and you could not see her bones through the long dress she had decided to put on. Her arms were slightly more athletic looking and her face, was looking fuller. She performed this spell daily as it made others more comfortable around her. She hated the stares she got any time she went shopping or out in public. The only time she let her guard down was when she was in the bathroom and could lock the door.   
  
She fumbled with the dress she was wearing. It fell all the way to the floor, covering her feet, but it was just a simple, black and sleeveless number. Satisfied with her appearance, she walked out of the bathroom, through the kitchen and living space, into her bedroom. She walked to the dressing table and picked up a long, fine gold chain that had a gold rectangle pendant on it, housing a large, pale yellow crystal. It sparkled in the low lighting and she put it on, making sure the clasp sat at the nape of her neck. Her earrings were already in as she rarely took them out. A variety of different sparkly studs sat in one her many piercings, most of which were small, apart from the gold ring that sat at the top of her left ear.   
  
Lottie peered at her wardrobe; she wanted a jacket of some sort. It was still warm out, but she always felt the cold a lot sooner than everyone else and she did not know what the house would be like. She found what she was looking for and pulled out the long, double breasted blazer. It was black, a relatively thin material and soft. She put it on and rolled the sleeves up so that they were now three-quarter length and the black satin underneath was visible. Satisfied, she looked around for her sandals. Spotting the sparkly, gold sliders, she slipped her feet into them.   
  
She turned to Oscar, who had been watching her from the comfort of the bed. “How do I look?” she asked him. Oscar merely meowed back but she took it as approval.   
  
“Right,” she said, looking around, feeling as though was missing something. Realising what it was, as her eyes fell on her rucksack, she smiled “Won’t need that.”   
  
Lottie looked at her watch and felt her stomach flip. It was ten to six. “Okay, Oscar. Time to go.” She told him, walking towards the tent door. Oscar, not wanting to be left behind, stood up on the bed, stretched and then leapt from the bed to follow.   
  
Hearing the thud of his paws on the ground, Lottie turned back and saw him approaching with a couple of squeaks, “Uh uh, no” she said, pointing a finger at him. “You stay here until you’re called, understood?”   
  
Oscar stopped and sat down. “Good boy.” She said with a smile, “Okay, wish me luck!” and with that, Lottie turned to the tent door and took a deep breath before pulling it back and stepping out into the warmth of the summer evening. It felt much warmer tonight than it had a few nights ago, but she had learnt that there was no rhyme or reason to British weather.   
  
As she walked to the house in front of her, she felt her body tingle with invisible electricity. She had not felt this nervous in a very long time. It felt as though it was getting harder and harder to put one foot in front of the other. She was starting to feel light-headed as she made it to the back door. Though she suspected that it might also have something to do with the lack of food and sleep.   
  
“Deep breaths, Lottie.” She muttered to herself as she fought to steady her nerves. She took a couple of deep breaths in through her nose and exhaled through her mouth. Certain she was not going to be sick, or worse, faint she raised her hand to the door and hesitated. She could hear faint noises coming from inside, it sounded like there were quite a few people in there. She looked at the watch on the wrist of her raised hand. It was exactly five to six.  
  
She sighed deeply and before she could back out and run, like everything in her body was telling her to, she knocked twice and waited.   
  
The voices inside the Burrow stopped and she could almost feel the frantic energy coming from within.   
  
Someone approached the door and then there was silence.   
  
“Er… Um…Who’s there?” asked the female voice.   
  
Lottie looked at the door and frowned in confusion. Was this a joke?   
  
“Lottie?” she almost questioned.   
  
“Lottie who?” came the voice. Lottie could hear harsh whispers from the other side but could not make them out. She raised an eyebrow at the door, before realising that this must be some sort of security thing.   
  
Going along with it, she responded, “Charlotte Lily Potter, sister to Harry James Potter, and goddaughter to Remus John Lupin and Sirius Black.”   
  
No response. There was further muttering before Lottie heard, “Oh for crying out loud Kingsley, it’s her! Oh fine!” _Remus,_ she thought. She heard more footsteps approaching the door.   
  
“Lottie?” Remus asked softly, “Lottie, what did you used to call me when you were little?”   
  
Lottie felt a deep pressure somewhere in her diaphragm. An overwhelming sense of sadness washed over her. She had not been expecting that; only three people alive today knew the answer to that question and two were on the other side of the door. Her eyes burned with the warning of tears. Taking a moment to compose herself, she cleared her throat and sniffed, thinking back to when it was a much simpler, happier time.   
  
Lottie paused before opening her mouth to reply, “… Memus.” she said, her voice soft.   
  
There was a series of clicks, before the door swung open. Remus stood there with his hand holding the edge of the door, looking down at Lottie. His expression was unreadable, but his thoughts were not. Lottie grimaced and immediately softened towards him compared to last night. He was not off the hook by any stretch of the imagination, no one was in her mind, but she did feel sorry for him and the pain he felt.   
  
“Come in.” said Remus cautiously, dropping his arm and stepping back.   
  
Lottie nodded and, as she took the first step over the threshold, her eyes grew wide as she took in the sheer volume of people in the small kitchen.   
  
“An audience,” she mused, under her breath. “Wonderful.”   
  
“Hmm?” asked Remus, closing the door behind them.   
  
“Nothing.” said Lottie, shaking her head slightly.   
  
She had not been expecting anything less if she was totally honest with herself. This was going to be quite the revelation. She glanced around the room and learnt two things immediately. There was a serious mix of age groups and a significant number of people in the room had red hair. She took the opportunity of stunned silence to listen.   
  
_Woah, she’s hot.  
  
Merlin! She is far too thin!   
  
Did she say Memus?   
  
She does not look like Harry at all.   
  
I wonder if she’s single.   
  
Did she have an American accent?  
  
Harry is not going to react well.   
  
How is Harry going to take this?  
  
_Upon hearing the last two, she blocked them off. She did not want to hear any more for now because she was thinking the same thing and it only made her more nervous and she did not want to give away her secret. Not just yet.   
  
“Would you like to sit down?” asked a slightly plump, kind looking, red-haired lady, gesturing to the long, wooden kitchen table.   
  
“I think maybe introductions might be in order first, Molly dear.” Said the red-haired man beside her.   
  
“I’m not sure we have time.” Came a deep voice from the other end of the kitchen. The man who spoke was looking out of the window.   
  
Along with everyone else in the room, Lottie followed the man’s gaze and her breath caught in her throat. There he was, walking up the garden path, past her tent, with a very strange looking man.   
  
“Harry.” She whispered, her eyes wide. “Oh my god.”   
  
Lottie swayed gently on the spot, the shock of seeing her brother for the first time in sixteen years, taking over. Remus, noticing this, put his arms around her to steady her. She grasped the front of his robes, looking up at him and then over to Sirius who had stood up to look out of the window at his approaching godson. Sirius walked over and joined them, squeezing Lottie’s arm reassuringly. Lottie looked back through the window; they were almost at the door. She had started to tremble.   
  
“Come on,” muttered Remus, pulling Lottie away from the door and over to the far side of the kitchen where there was a perfectly good wall to lean against for stability. Sirius followed and stood with them. Lottie allowed herself to be steered away, trusting that they at least had some form of a plan.   
  
There was a knock at the door and everyone flinched.


	7. Chapter 7. The Betrayal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry looked at Ginny, almost in shock. He had forgotten that she was there. Her words, along with Ron and Hermione’s, somehow made the feeling of betrayal even worse.
> 
> “I’m so sick of this.” he said, to no one in particular. “I’m so sick of my life being controlled by everyone else.” 

**Chapter 7. The Betrayal.**

Harry landed with a thud, his knees buckling only ever so slightly this time. _Getting better_ , he noted to himself, looking down at his knees. After all the times he apparated and disapparated with Dumbledore earlier this year, he was finally starting to get used to the sensation.  
  
The wind rustled through his hair, it was warm and heavily perfumed with the scent of the jasmine and honeysuckle hedges in the garden. He took in the sight before him. The Burrow. It was one of his favourite places, filled with happy memories and not at all like the place he had just left. His stomach flipped at the thought of never having to go back there again. He smiled to himself.  
  
“Come on,” said Mad Eye, breaking him from his thoughts, “Let’s get inside.”  
  
Harry nodded. He was keen to get inside and reunite with Ron and Hermione. They had so many things to discuss that they had not been able to do over the holidays. For starters, he was quite interested to find out why he had not heard from them this summer; or anyone for that matter. He frowned to himself as he and Mad Eye started walking towards the Burrow.  
  
As they walked, Harry noticed the tent. “Hey Mad Eye,” he said curiously, “What’s with the tent?”  
  
Mad Eye said nothing.  
  
“Mad Eye?” asked Harry, glancing sideways at him.  
  
“You’ll find out soon enough.” He said gruffly.  
  
Harry’s frown deepened with his confusion. Something was off.  
  
They approached the door to the kitchen of the Burrow and Mad Eye knocked, glancing down at Harry as he did. “Just keep an open mind, Potter.” he said.  
  
Harry looked perplexed. “About what?”  
  
Mad Eye just looked at him and then back at the door. “You’ll see.” he muttered.  
  
Harry just stared at him, utterly lost, as Mad Eye gave an answer to the door in front of him. “I’ll see wha-” began Harry, pausing mid-sentence as Mad Eye ushered him inside somewhat awkwardly, causing Harry to momentarily lose his balance and clutch at the door handle to stop himself from fully falling.  
  
“Mad Eye, I’ll see what?” asked Harry, finding his feet. Now standing upright and in full view of the room, he took in all the faces around him. “Oh.”  
  
***

Lottie, Remus and Sirius all watched as Mad Eye and Harry clumsily crossed the threshold. Once convinced Lottie was not going to fall over, Remus and Sirius had let go of her and just stood either side, not wanting it to look suspicious to Harry. While they may have agreed to wing it, they wanted to find the right moment to do so.  
  
Upon Harry’s somewhat inelegant entrance, Sirius burst into life at the sight of his godson, making Lottie and everyone else in the room jump, and approached him with open arms. “Harry!”  
  
“What do you mean we’re winging it,” hissed Lottie, under her breath to Remus, watching Sirius give Harry a bone crushing hug.  
  
While the rest of the room broke into a low chatter, getting louder and louder as people started saying their hellos, Remus just stared at his goddaughter. “What?” he whispered, the shock in his voice apparent.  
  
“We’re winging it? I thought you had a plan!”  
  
“B-but how?” Remus asked, his brow furrowing. “How did you know that?”  
  
Lottie shook her head to silence him. She watched as Harry broke away from the kind looking lady who she learnt was called Mrs Weasley or Molly and approached two people his own age. One tall boy with red hair and a shorter, pretty girl with bushy brown hair.  
  
“Alright mate!” said the tall boy, clapping Harry on the shoulder “Good to see you!”  
  
“Yeah you too” said Harry with a grin on his face. The girl with the bushy curly hair, flung her arms around Harry. “Oh Harry, it’s so good to see you!” she said, eventually releasing him.  
  
“Yeah you too Hermione” said Harry, with the same big grin. Harry’s eyes darted to where Lottie and Remus were standing.  
  
“Hey Remus!” said Harry, enthusiastically stepping towards him.  
  
Remus smiled and met him halfway, pulling him into a hug. “Hello Harry, it’s good to have you back.”  
  
Harry looked slightly taken aback at the gesture but returned the hug all the same. “It’s good to be back.” He said, looking at Remus. Harry’s eyes met with Lottie’s. “Hello.” He said kindly.  
  
“Ron, Hermione, why don’t you help Harry settle in upstairs in Ron’s room and then come back down and join us?” Mrs Weasley interjected quickly, recognising the look of sheer panic on Lottie’s face. Harry looked back at Molly and then to his friends and smiled. “Sure.” He said, turning away from Lottie and Remus.  
  
Lottie watched as Harry walked away towards the stairs with his two friends.  
  
Once she was sure that they were out of earshot, Molly turned to Lottie. “We don’t have much time. So, let’s get you a drink and do some introductions.” She said in a hushed voice, gesturing to the drinks on the table nearby, “What will you have?”  
  
Lottie remained silent. It had taken roughly one minute of seeing Harry interact with the people in the room before she realised, she had made a mistake. She was robbing Harry of at least one lovely evening of catching up and general fun with those he regarded as his friends and family. She wanted to leave immediately.  
  
“I shouldn’t be here,” she told Molly, moving away from Remus and towards her and the kitchen door, “I can’t do this to him tonight. He’s so happy to be here and I’m going to spoil it for him”  
  
“Lottie!” Remus said, startled.  
  
“Nonsense,” said Molly, holding out an arm to stop her. Lottie looked down at the floor. “You’ve come all this way; it is time he learnt the truth.”  
  
“It is also time you got your brother back.” Molly added, placing her hand gently on Lottie’s chin and lifting her head up so that Lottie’s sad eyes met hers. “Now, what will you have to drink.”  
  
***  
  
“What’s with the crowd tonight? Order meeting?” Harry asked, as he and his two best friends stomped up the stairs to Ron’s room.  
  
Ron and Hermione, who were trailing behind Harry, exchanged a brief, nervous glance and before Ron said, “Yeah, of sorts.”  
  
“What do you mean?” asked Harry, stopping outside of Ron’s room and looking back at them.  
  
“Well at least we think it is,” added Hermione, wringing her hands. She hated lying to him like this. “It hasn’t started yet.”  
  
“Blimey!” said Harry, surprisedly “and we get to join them?”  
  
“It would seem so” replied Ron.  
  
“Are you kidding?” Harry asked, shocked that his friends did not seem more excited about it. “Well what are we waiting for, let’s go!”  
  
Harry dropped his bag to the floor and made to leave the room when he noticed the shared glance between Ron and Hermione. “What?” he asked.  
  
“Nothing” said Ron quickly.  
  
“Don’t you want to stay up here for a bit?” asked Hermione, biting her lip nervously.  
  
“Are you both joking? The entire order is down there! Even McGonagall and a few people other people I didn’t even recognise. Don’t you realise that this is obviously a really important meeting?” Harry exclaimed, “Come on! I want to find out what’s going on.”  
  
Harry walked out of the room.  
  
“Yeah, a really important meeting about you… and your sister.” muttered Ron under his breath, glancing at Hermione.  
  
“Ron! Shh!” whispered Hermione, glancing at the door. Ron looked at her meekly and shrugged. Hermione could hear Harry making his way down the stairs. She sighed heavily, “Come on, let’s get this over with.”  
  
Ron nodded and they walked out together, following Harry down the stairs.  
  


***  
  
“And that’s my eldest son, Bill and his fiancé, Fleur.” said Mrs Weasley, motioning to the last two people in the room that she had yet been introduced to.  
  
Lottie gave them a small smile as she held on to her glass of elf-made wine with both hands. She had given in and though she knew better than to drink on an empty stomach, she was grateful for the warm, fuzzy feeling it was giving her.  
  
Lottie had now been introduced to everyone in the room. It was uncomfortable because they had all given her the same, awkward look, not really knowing what to do with the information. She was blocking out everyone’s thoughts, but she had found it strange when she was introduced to the man that had arrived with Harry, named Alastor “everyone calls me Mad-Eye” Moody. He had stared at her a little longer than she had liked. It was as though he knew something or could see through her. It made her feel uneasy. Perhaps it was the eye, that had been whizzing around in its socket until he made eye contact and it fixed on her. Or maybe it was the fact that everyone called him ‘Mad-Eye’.  
  
Overhead, she could hear footsteps. Harry was coming back down. Her stomach flipped.  
  
The room fell silent and all eyes were on the staircase that led from the kitchen to the upper floors of the house. Lottie had positioned herself near the kitchen door, on the opposite side of the kitchen to the stairs. When Mrs Weasley had asked if she wanted to sit down, she shook her head and said she had always preferred to stand. Besides, she felt as though if she sat down, the others might think her intruding or think that she thought she was entitled to a seat at the table. She was, after all, a complete stranger to them.  
  
Mrs Weasley had even extended the table as far as it would allow so that all the occupants in the room could sit down. But Lottie still declined. She admitted to herself that it did look a little peculiar that she was the only one standing, but it was the lesser of two evils, so she stayed where she was.  
  
Remus and Sirius had sat at the end of the table closest to her. There was a small gap in the middle of the table on the opposite side, between Ginny and Fred and George, which had been left for the trio making their way down the stairs.  
  
Harry appeared first, looking around at the room and his eyes falling on the gap. He immediately sat down next to Ginny and smiled at her. Lottie resisted the urge to smile herself. She recognised that look; it was not one of friendship, of that she was sure.  
  
Lottie looked over as Ron and Hermione appeared at the foot of the stairs and joined Harry at the table. There was a bit of a shuffle as they all tried to make themselves comfortable. No one spoke. Harry’s eyes darted around the room, before landing on Lottie’s.  
  
“Aren’t you going to sit?” he asked her, looking slightly puzzled.  
  
Lottie just stared at him holding her wine tightly. She shook her head. “No, I’ve been sitting all day.” she said softly.

Her heart was pounding in her chest. It was the first conversation they had had in sixteen years. It was not something to write home about, but it was pleasant, and it was real. Not like the ones she had had in her head.  
  
“I really think you should sit.” Muttered Remus, out of the corner of his mouth, partially looking over his shoulder.  
  
Harry frowned. _Do they know each other?_ He thought to himself. He had noticed, when stood in the kitchen earlier, that they had been standing quite closely together.  
  
Lottie, noticing Harry’s suspicious frown and avoiding the temptation to listen in to his thoughts, decided that perhaps it might be better now that several people had asked. So, she walked over to where Remus and Sirius were sat in front of her and scooted in between the two of them, placing her wine on the table gently. The whole table bustled to make room, but they did not have to go too far as luckily, she took up very little space. She looked over to Harry and smiled weakly, hoping he was satisfied that she was now sat down with them all.  
  
Again, silence fell on the room.  
  
Harry looked around at the table before locking eyes with Sirius.  
  
“So, what’s going on? Why is the entire order here? Has something happened?” he asked seriously.  
  
Sirius looked at Remus and then back at Harry.  
  
“Sort of.” He replied quietly, looking at his godson. Sirius was struggling. This was harder than he had even contemplated. He dearly wished that he and Remus had come up with a better plan.  
  
“Sort of?” repeated Harry, “What does that mean? Ron said the same earlier… what’s going on?”  
  
No one spoke again. Everyone’s eyes kept darting from Harry, to Remus, to Sirius and back to Harry again.  
  
“Why do you all look as though you’ve had bad news?” Harry asked, looking around at the solemn faces. “No really, what’s happened?”  
  
Lottie took a sip of wine. This was a disaster, there were no two ways about that. If the course of this conversation did not change, she was going to have to step in.  
  
“Nothing, Harry” said Remus, “Well not, nothing, but nothing bad. Well not really, but it’s good.” Remus glanced at Sirius who was shaking his head slightly and giving him a look that said, ‘what the hell are you saying?’. Remus leant forward, resting his elbows on the table, bringing one hand to his chin and resting his other hand over his mouth and stared down at the table.  
  
Harry looked at Remus with a confused frown. “So, nothing, but not nothing, but not bad but bad, but also good?” he asked with a wry smile. “I see. That makes sense.”  
  
Lottie was staring at Remus incredulously. She took a sharp intake of breath and looked at her brother, “Harry, I think I might be able to help with this.” She said, “Well at least, I might be able to do a better job of explaining.” She shot Remus and Sirius a look _. So much for winging it_ , she thought to herself.  
  
Harry turned his head to Lottie. “Sorry, but I don’t think we’ve met.” He told her apologetically.  
  
“We have.” Lottie replied simply.  
  
Lottie sensed the change in emotion in the room, it was charged with an electric tension. All eyes were on her and then Harry.  
  
“We have?” he asked her, slightly embarrassed, “I’m so sorry, I - I can’t place you.”  
  
“That’s alright,” said Lottie, with a small, sad smile. “It was a long time ago.”  
  
“Oh.” Harry said, and then added, “I’m struggling to remember your name.”  
  
“Understandable,” Lottie said, gently nodding, “Like I said, it was a long time ago. A very long time ago.”  
  
Lottie paused to take another sip of wine. “It’s Lottie. Well, Charlotte, but everyone calls me Lottie.”  
  
“Lottie.” repeated Harry, feigning recognition “Right!”  
  
Lottie smiled. He was trying to spare her feelings, but she knew he had no idea who she was. Weirdly, she appreciated it. She took a moment to enjoy the conversation, it was as good as it was going to get for a while.

There was another emotional change in the room. Lottie did not need to look around to know that like her, everyone was feeling the same thing. An impending sense of dread.  
  
She tried to ignore it. “Well, you and I, we actually go way ba-” Lottie began.  
  
“She’s your sister!” Sirius blurted out loudly.  
  
The words rang out through the kitchen, reverberating off every surface and ringing in every ear.  
  
Remus and Lottie both looked at Sirius in utter disbelief. Their eyes wide and mouths open in shock. Lottie put her elbows on the table and leant into her hands to rub her temples. Remus went back to leaning his chin on one hand and covering his mouth with the other, shaking his head ever so slightly. He could not believe what Sirius had just done.  
  
Had it had not been quite a serious situation; it would have been quite amusing. Each person around the table had a similar reaction. Foreheads fell into hands, eyes were wide, mouths were covered, and heads were shaking all over the place.  
  
Harry sat in stunned silence. It took him a moment before he found his voice.  
  
“My sister?” he choked, looking at Sirius and then to Remus and back again. “What are you playing at? I don’t have a sister, you know that…”  
  
“You do, Harry” came Remus’ muffled voice. He was speaking through his hand, “Lottie is your sister.” He glanced at his goddaughter.  
  
“B-but how?” he breathed, unable to take this all in.  
  
“It’s a really long story, Harry.” said Lottie, who still had her head in her hands, looking down at the table between her elbows. She looked up and she too, clasped her hand into a fist and covered it and her mouth with the other hand.  
  
Harry frowned slightly, looking at both Lottie and Remus. Their body language mirrored each other. It further cemented in his mind that they clearly knew each other well.  
  
“Oui, and eet iz one we ‘ave all been waiting to ‘ear.” came Fleur’s voice from the far end of the table.  
  
Another blow. Lottie could not believe it. There was a disaster and then there was this. Remus, Sirius and Lottie all shot Fleur a look that said, ‘stop talking’. Lottie was slightly pleased to see that a few other people had done the same.  
  
Hermione closed her eyes and sighed. They had been doing so well not to give away the fact that this was not entirely a surprise to everyone, and Fleur had just dropped them in it.   
  
“What do you mean, ‘have been waiting’?” he shot at her.  
  
Everyone around the table shifted uncomfortably. Harry noticed.  
  
“Wait a second.” he said slowly, looking around the room. “am I missing something here?”  
  
No one said anything. Lottie braced herself. She could feel it. It was about to go from disaster to a category five storm.  
  
Harry raised his eyebrows. “Well am I?” he demanded. A few people flinched.  
  
“Harry” began Sirius, “It’s not as simple as that.”  
  
“Yes it is!” Hermione said, shrilly, looking around the room, “Well if no one is going to say it, I will-”  
  
“Say what, Hermione?” Harry pressed.  
  
“Hermione, don’t” warned Ron.  
  
“No, Ron” Hermione said firmly, looking at him “he’s our friend and he deserves to know.”  
  
“Know what?” asked Harry, getting irritated.  
  
“Harry, everyone in this room knew you had a sister in one way or another. Some of us found out a few days ago and others, well…” she said hurriedly as though saying it quickly made it less painful. “Well some of the others have known for a very long time.”  
  
Lottie heard a few exasperated groans. The kind of groan that comes from being chucked under the bus but instead of it happening behind a person’s back, the person had instead been forced into a room and had been made to listen.  
  
Hermione ignored the groans and watched Harry’s face carefully. A myriad of emotions flicked across his face. He did not speak but instead stood up slowly and backed away from the table.  
  
“Harry?” she asked timidly. Still nothing.  
  
Lottie watched Harry; she could feel everything he was feeling. Her chest felt as though it was being crushed.  
  
“Harry” said Sirius, moving to get up to comfort him.  
  
“No.” said Harry, finally. He locked eyes with his godfather, causing Sirius to freeze in a half standing, half sitting position. His voice was low and dangerous. “No.” Sirius sat back down.  
  
“Harry, mate?” asked Ron, hesitantly.  
  
Harry looked at Ron and then Hermione. “You both knew?” he asked in a barely audible whisper.  
  
“Well, kind of but-” said Ron, half shrugging awkwardly, his ears turning red.  
  
“Harry, we didn’t want to know, it just sort of happened! We wanted to tell you, really we did, please don’t be mad.” pleaded Hermione, her eyes sparkling with tears.  
  
“You wanted to tell me?” Harry repeated slowly and quietly.  
  
“Yes!” implored Hermione, “But-”  
  
“But what?” He asked.  
  
“We didn’t know how and well…” she said meekly, wringing her hands and biting her lip nervously “We didn’t think it was our place to…”  
  
“I see…”  
  
“Harry, please…”  
  
“So, is that why I’ve had not any contact over the summer?” he asked, trying to keep his voice level looking straight at his friend before looking at the people around the table “You’ve all been here discussing some hidden secret, without bothering to let me in on it?”  
  
“Harry, it’s not like that.” said Ginny quietly.  
  
Harry looked at Ginny, almost in shock. He had forgotten that she was there. Her words, along with Ron and Hermione’s, somehow made the feeling of betrayal even worse.  
  
“I’m so sick of this.” he said, to no one in particular. “I’m so sick of my life being controlled by everyone else.”  
  
Lottie could feel Sirius and Remus either side of her, between Sirius’ shallow breathing and their shared feeling of despair and guilt, it was emanating off them in waves. She stared at the table, unsure of what her next move was going to be. The level of emotion in the room was making it hard to concentrate, but Lottie blocked it off and honed in on Harry’s.   
  
“Your life isn’t controlled Harry” said Remus, quietly “We couldn’t control this. We only found out that Lottie was alive two days ago.” Lottie stiffened; it was the wrong approach.  
  
Harry could not believe what he was hearing. “And you think that makes it okay, Remus?” he asked incredulously. “Can you hear yourself?”  
  
Remus opened and then closed his mouth. Harry was right.  
  
“You may have only found out that she was alive two days ago… but how long have you known that she actually existed?” Harry continued, waving his arm in Lottie’s general direction, “I have spent my entire life believing that I was an only child, only to find out that seventeen years later, it’s not true!”  
  
“Harry, I know this is a massive shock but-” Remus said, trying to reason with him.  
  
“A shock?” he asked, his eyes wide in disbelief, “No Remus, a shock was when I found out I’d be fighting a dragon in fourth year. This, this is nothing short of a mind fuck.”  
  
Mrs Weasley winced at the bad language but now was certainly not the time to say anything.  
  
“This is unbelievable.” He muttered, running his hands through his hair and pacing on the spot.  
  
“Harry, if you could just let us explain.” Sirius pleaded with him.  
  
“Explain?” he shot Sirius an angry look. “I can’t believe ANYTHING any one of you say!” He spat.  
  
Lottie took a deep breath.  
  
“Harry?” she asked, cautiously, “Harry, I can’t excuse what’s been done here but-”  
  
“And YOU!” Harry rounded on her. “What the hell do you think you’re playing at?”  
  
Lottie’s eyes grew wide. She was not expecting that. She could feel how overwhelmed he was getting. That energy had to go somewhere, and she had the feeling that she was about to take a hit.  
  
“You show up here after god knows how long!” he shouted, “Claiming to be my sister and what, you expect me to believe that you had no way of getting in touch?”  
  
Remus and Sirius shared a glance. This was not going at all well. They had at least expected Harry to show some form of kindness towards Lottie.  
  
“I can exp-” Lottie said feebly. This was not a person she had any hope of reasoning with.  
  
“No.” Harry interrupted. “I’ve heard enough. I need some air.” He started walking towards the kitchen door.  
  
“Harry…Please, just stay and hear us out.” Sirius begged.  
  
Harry stopped, his hand on the door handle. He turned and looked at the anguished faces of the people staring back at him. “Go to hell… all of you.” He said, before pulling the door open and stepping out into the night.  
  
***  
  
  



End file.
